For over 180 years, there has been debate around whether photography is a true art form, as some argue it is too literal of a medium compared to traditional art that uses imagination. While the idea of photography as merely a mechanical process lingered into the 1960s-70s, with art photography seen as niche, over the past few decades the question has come up less frequently. When a photograph by Andreas Gursky sold for a record £2.7 million last year, the debate was seen as effectively ended. Now the National Gallery is holding its first major photography exhibition, further cementing photos as art.